Loulen's Restaurant
In truth, The Host and I were both very skeptical about Loulen's. First off, we have never tasted Filipino food before and did not know what to expect. Sure I've heard of pork adobo, pork with peas and lumpia but what about all of those other dishes that I've never heard of before? And what about that "pig blood" dish I keep hearing about? I was about to find out first hand. However, the interesting ingredients wasn't the only thing that had me on end. I (like most other food bloggers) research restaurants before actually deciding if a trip to the establishment is worth it. I have read that there were American dishes on the menu and that most dishes were obscenely overpriced. So there was some skepticism while we drove to the eatery.
Loulen's Restaurant sits on a gigantic parcel of land (for a restaurant that is). My best guess is that they are trying to lease some of their space as there seems to be an upstairs with office units. We got to Loulen's at about 1:00 PM so the fact that there really wasn't anyone around didn't seem too disturbing to me at the moment (more on that later). There are a bunch of parking stalls out front with a few of them marked "15 minute parking" for those who have pre-ordered and were there to pick-up their food. There was also a lot in back with additional parking. When we entered the restaurant we were welcomed by the waitress and were seated.
The inside of Loulen's is just as spacious as it looked outside. There was a lot of room between tables (not to say there weren't a lot of tables) and in the front sat a full-bar (which you don't see a lot of these days).
The Bar
The wall was painted over with a giant mural depicting some hot air balloons, cliffs and water along with some other interesting out of place objects. It seemed odd it just didn't seem to go well with the whole Loulen's ambiance. The waitress gave us our menu's and the first thing we were asked were, "Are you Filipino?" This was a strange question but thinking about how most people (even here in Hawai'i) wouldn't try Filipino food even if given the chance, I guess the question wasn't that out of place as I originally thought. We replied that we weren't Filipino. The waitress had a surprised look on her face. She then kindly pointed out a few dishes that seemed rather bland and not too adventurous. We thanked her and were left to contemplate what we were going to have for lunch.
We knew that we wanted the full experience so we decided not to take our waitress' suggestions. It was at this time that I noticed that there was only a breakfast and Filipino menu. I assumed that they got rid of the American elements from their menu (a smart choice in my opinion). As previously noted, some of their dishes were pricey considering the contents of the dish but overall it wasn't as bad as it was made out to be.
We picked four dishes. The first dish was pork lechon. The easiest way for me to describe pork lechon is to compare it with its Chinese equivalent roast pork. It is deep fried pork belly served with a vinegar and tomato sauce. This was by far the most familiar dish we had and probably the best (how can you go wrong with pork belly?).
Pork Lechon
Loulen's Restaurant sits on a gigantic parcel of land (for a restaurant that is). My best guess is that they are trying to lease some of their space as there seems to be an upstairs with office units. We got to Loulen's at about 1:00 PM so the fact that there really wasn't anyone around didn't seem too disturbing to me at the moment (more on that later). There are a bunch of parking stalls out front with a few of them marked "15 minute parking" for those who have pre-ordered and were there to pick-up their food. There was also a lot in back with additional parking. When we entered the restaurant we were welcomed by the waitress and were seated.
The inside of Loulen's is just as spacious as it looked outside. There was a lot of room between tables (not to say there weren't a lot of tables) and in the front sat a full-bar (which you don't see a lot of these days).
The BarThe wall was painted over with a giant mural depicting some hot air balloons, cliffs and water along with some other interesting out of place objects. It seemed odd it just didn't seem to go well with the whole Loulen's ambiance. The waitress gave us our menu's and the first thing we were asked were, "Are you Filipino?" This was a strange question but thinking about how most people (even here in Hawai'i) wouldn't try Filipino food even if given the chance, I guess the question wasn't that out of place as I originally thought. We replied that we weren't Filipino. The waitress had a surprised look on her face. She then kindly pointed out a few dishes that seemed rather bland and not too adventurous. We thanked her and were left to contemplate what we were going to have for lunch.
We knew that we wanted the full experience so we decided not to take our waitress' suggestions. It was at this time that I noticed that there was only a breakfast and Filipino menu. I assumed that they got rid of the American elements from their menu (a smart choice in my opinion). As previously noted, some of their dishes were pricey considering the contents of the dish but overall it wasn't as bad as it was made out to be.
We picked four dishes. The first dish was pork lechon. The easiest way for me to describe pork lechon is to compare it with its Chinese equivalent roast pork. It is deep fried pork belly served with a vinegar and tomato sauce. This was by far the most familiar dish we had and probably the best (how can you go wrong with pork belly?).
Pork LechonThe second dish that we ordered was called "Billy's Special". "Billy's Special" is shredded pieces of goat served with onions, ginger, cilantro, and cabbage. It was slightly tangy and was very delicious. Goat has that sharp game flavor and goes good with the vegetables.
"Billy's Special"
Our third dish was a classic Filipino soup -- sari sari. The broth was tomato based that was out-of-this-world amazing. The soup contained a mixture of vegetables including string beans, two types of squash, and eggplant along with pork. Sari-sari would be perfect on a cold winter day.
Sari-Sari
"Billy's Special"Our third dish was a classic Filipino soup -- sari sari. The broth was tomato based that was out-of-this-world amazing. The soup contained a mixture of vegetables including string beans, two types of squash, and eggplant along with pork. Sari-sari would be perfect on a cold winter day.
Sari-SariThe last dish that we ordered was kari-kari. Kari-kari is a peanut-based oxtail stew. Although it was a bit bland it was a very original idea.
Kari-Kari
Kari-KariOverall Loulen's is more of a family affair. The food (non-breakfast) is ordered family style and rice is provided. Eat at Loulen's on Saturday's and you will find that they serve an all-you-can-eat-and-drink lunch and dinner buffet. Recently a family member of mine went to the restaurant to eat dinner. Again there wasn't a lot of people around and the dining room was empty. My best guess is that Loulen's is still struggling to find a strong customer base. However the food is good and that is always the main thing. I now have a new outlook on Filipino food. I love it. I will definatly be eating more Filipino food in the future.
Rating System: 1-2.5-5 (poor-average-excellent)
Service: 3
Food Quality: 3
Monetary Value: 2
Quality vs Quantity: Tie
Overall: 2.6
Contact Info:
Address: 1125 North King St.
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Phone: 808-853-2212 (take-out available)
Hours: 6 AM - 10 PM seven days a week
--Upcoming Posts and News--
-A Taste of What's to Come
Rating System: 1-2.5-5 (poor-average-excellent)
Service: 3
Food Quality: 3
Monetary Value: 2
Quality vs Quantity: Tie
Overall: 2.6
Contact Info:
Address: 1125 North King St.
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Phone: 808-853-2212 (take-out available)
Hours: 6 AM - 10 PM seven days a week
--Upcoming Posts and News--
-A Taste of What's to Come
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